Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Sold by Ring Mountain Capital LLC

Key Points

• Ring Mountain Capital reduced its Meta position by 3.6% in the third quarter, selling 657 shares and retaining 17,833 shares valued at approximately $12.9 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s outstanding stock.
• Meta shares rose 2.5% to $761.82, near the company’s 52-week high, while analysts maintained a broadly bullish outlook with a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $796.51.
• Meta’s revenue increased 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, but earnings per share fell short of estimates. Investors are weighing strong advertising and AI growth against elevated valuation, rising infrastructure costs and planned spending of up to $145 billion.

Ring Mountain Capital LLC lowered its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 3.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,833 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 657 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 5.3% of Ring Mountain Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Ring Mountain Capital LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $12,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $69,502,379,000 after acquiring an additional 105,154,977 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 723.1% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,801,764 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $4,957,946,000 after purchasing an additional 7,732,446 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,948,486,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 488.1% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,608,445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,537,076 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $51,841,811,000 after purchasing an additional 3,510,123 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 2.5%

Meta Platforms stock traded up $18.86 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $761.82. The company had a trading volume of 15,503,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,476,549. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $779.82. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $644.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $621.26.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The business had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.14 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a $0.5250 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

META has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $763.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and issued a $886.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday. Erste Group Bank raised Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $740.00 to $955.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $796.51.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares in the company, valued at $131,515,624.16. This represents a 17.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, October 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $728.08, for a total transaction of $688,763.68. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 7,878 shares in the company, valued at $5,735,814.24. This represents a 10.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 148,222 shares of company stock valued at $101,033,627. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s launch of the Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full AI models is the primary catalyst. The models are positioned to compete with offerings from OpenAI and Anthropic and could improve Meta’s Muse assistant and support new subscription revenue. Reuters article on Meta's Muse Wonder models
• Positive Sentiment: Third-party data reportedly showed early Muse user retention rates rivaling ChatGPT, strengthening confidence that Meta’s large AI investment can generate meaningful user engagement and monetization. Yahoo Finance article on Muse retention
• Positive Sentiment: Truist issued a Street-high $1,000 price target, citing Muse adoption and Meta’s machine-learning advertising push. KeyCorp and Rosenblatt also reiterated bullish ratings with targets of $900 and $886, respectively. 247WallSt article on Truist's Meta price target
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s advertising business remains strong: second-quarter revenue increased 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, while improved ad conversions and AI-driven targeting continue to support growth expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: Meta expanded its Quest ecosystem partnership with Virtuix. Virtuix said Omni One orders rose approximately threefold following its Quest launch, potentially supporting demand for Meta’s virtual-reality hardware and platform. Virtuix Meta partnership announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting third-quarter earnings on October 21. Meta has guided for revenue of $61 billion to $64 billion, making results, outlook, AI spending and advertising trends key near-term catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary caution that Meta’s shares have already advanced substantially and trade at a premium valuation. Rising AI infrastructure costs and a planned $130 billion–$145 billion spending program could pressure margins and free cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: Muse’s global download growth has slowed, and Meta’s latest earnings included an EPS miss despite strong revenue growth. Cantor Fitzgerald also trimmed its target to $840, underscoring valuation and execution risks. Wall Street Journal article on Muse and Meta's AI model

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company operates a global family of apps that includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, enabling users to connect, communicate, share content and discover communities.

Meta generates most of its business through digital advertising displayed across its platforms. Its products serve individuals, creators, businesses and organizations in markets around the world, while its advertising tools help businesses reach audiences based on factors such as interests, activity and demographics.

Through its Reality Labs division, Meta develops virtual and augmented reality hardware, software and services, including the Meta Quest line of headsets and related experiences.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.